Hi, I was just about to go to sleep and this writing idea popped into my head. It’s a soulmate au where my character feel each others pain, Character A gets stabbed in the throat, causing him to be temporarily mute. What are the odds of Character B, (Character A’s soulmate) to NOT mute? Charcter A can talk just fine once his wound heals, is this possible at all? Can two people get stabbed identically in the same place what are the odds of them having different injuries?? Bonus: what other soulmate tropes is your favorite? I was thinking first words each other say to one another appear when you are a certain age but, it seemed too similar to another story i read once.
Well... it would depend on where the stab wound was located. If it damaged the voice box or larynx which is where the vocal chords are that control speaking that is what may cause someone to become mute or lose their ability to speak.
The two characters may get stabbed in the same place, but (I assume) they have different bodies, right? Then it’s easy enough to imagine that some subtle difference between them makes all the difference, like one’s larynx is a centimeter longer than the other’s or something. Given that your working in a fantasy scenario to begin with, I think any reader would accept that.
It sounds like it would depend on the magical connection or whatever it is that makes A & B feel each others pain...so you can make it anyway you want! Do they only feel each others pain, or do they sustain the same injuries? If A cut their finger would B just feel the pain or would B have a cut that was bleeding on the same finger? In the real world, stab wounds in what looks like the same spot can have wildly differing results. If 10 people get stabbed in the neck, some might drop dead, some might gurgle and thrash and there's always that one guy who walks 16 blocks to the ER and says "Man, I don't feel great. Can I have a cigarette?" My father caught some shrapnel in his neck between the trachea and the artery. A little bit to either side and I might nor be here to type this. As it is, he just ended up getting a few bucks from the govt each month.
The outcome of this type of injury often comes down to millimeters. A little to the right or left, up or down, and the results can be vastly different. So yeah, you can get away with it.
It could depend on the physical traits (build, shape, strength, fitness, overall health) of the victims, the kind of weapon and the speed and quality of any medical assistance rendered.
If we are talking about the same attacker, then the question would be the physical differences between the two victims. Something as simple as a height difference can result in the slight variations that Toxnurse mentioned.
It would depend on a few things, but I would say it's possible that two practically identical stabs could produce different long term effects. If the stabs are somehow the exact same depth in the exact same location within the smallest measurement you could reasonably do, maybe one person just healed better, or was more muscular, or potentially their voice box was differently formed. There's a ton of differences in each person's body, even if all our parts seem uniform enough. Your concept seems good to me, go for it.
I'ver seen a lot of police bodycam videos, and the human body/mind is an incredible thing, capable of far more than we usually give it credit for. I've seen people involved in horrific car crashes jump out and run away. And I've seen suspects shrug off the taser as if it's nothing, and keep on attacking with insane strength while being shot repeatedly. There are two basic factors involved in this—well, let's say three. First, (the one I just added)—some people are just built a lot tougher than others. The kind who become stunt performers or professional wrestlers/football players, Hell's Angels etc. Or sometimes gangsters/career criminals. Second, drugs. Certain ones really hype a person up into some kind of intense state where they don't feel pain and their body seems to become nearly invulnerable. In particular angel dust (PCP), but probably many forms of stimulants. And third, someone in an extremely agitated and aggressive state gets those same results as the drugs can provide. I've come to realize it's what used to be known in ancient times as a berserker rage. In fact the Vikings chosen as berserkers would use drugs and powerful rituals involving some form of meditation/self hypnosis to get themselves into this state that makes them practically superhuman. It's a lot like a sports team or athlete psyching themselves up for a fight or an event. We've all done some form of this many times—like when you're super tired, don't feel capable of getting out of bed at all, but you psyche yourself up for that big meeting at work, or the final exams you need to take today and just do it. It's mind over matter, sheer will directing the body. There's also the thing called hysterical strength, when for instance a child is trapped under a car and the mother just picks up the end of it and moves it off of them, and normally she wouldn't be at all capable of any such feat. I don't know the mechanics involved, but I'm sure they all use more-or-less the same dynamics. Something to do with adrenaline and a few other hormones, and the autonomic nervous system etc. Intense focus, and some kind of powerful emotional state like rage or desperation. Eastern mystics (fakirs, gurus, Buddhist monks etc) are well known to be able to take intense pain and physical punishment if they get themselves into a deep meditational state. And they're said to be able to control bleeding from wounds and to exercise incredible control over internal body functions that are normally completely unconsciously controlled. I believe this is all the same thing (except for the first one, just being built really tough).
